Quote from Forum Archives on March 24, 2006, 10:58 am

Posted by: info <info@...>

E-pistle

Dr. Curt Scarborough, President
FreeWay Foundation March 24, 2006

Ezekiel's Vision of 4-Faced Angels

(Ezekiel 1:1-28)

Dr. Curt Scarborough

I. Concentration: on the contents of this chapter

1. Ezekiel ("God Strengthens") was a priest who was taken into
Babylonian

captivity along with King Jehoiachin in 597 BC; Ezekiel's prophetic visions

began when he was 30 years old, and his ministry to the exiles continued

for about 20 years, vv. 1-3.

2. The first part of Ezekiel's initial vision involved a great storm
coming from

the north, bringing four strange living creatures, vv. 4-14.

3. The second part of his vision portrayed a wheel within a wheel,
which

contained the spirit of these living creatures, vv. 15-21.

4. The third part of his vision focused on a glorious throne in the
firmament

upon which sat a man whose appearance was of the likeness of the

glory of the Lord, vv. 22-28.

II. Meditation: on the four faces of the angels, v. 10
(see Revelation 4:7)

1. The face of a man - symbolizing identification with humanity.

2. The face of a lion - symbolizing courage and nobility.

3. The face of an ox - symbolizing strength and faithful service.

4. The face of an eagle - symbolizing vision and swiftness.

III. Revelation: on the spiritual significance of God's
angels appearing to Ezekiel

1. The appearance of these angels coming in a whirlwind indicated that
these

were beings created by the power of Almighty God, v. 4.

2. These angels were controlled by the Spirit, and they were on a
mission to

serve God by ministering to God's people in Babylon, vv. 12, 20.

3. These angels were associated with a raging, holy fire, signifying
cleansing

and purification, vv. 4, 13; Hebrews 13:2.

4. These angels were totally awesome in appearance and very difficult
for

Ezekiel to describe; angels are able to change or disguise their

appearance, II Corinthians 11:14-15; Hebrews 13:2.

IV. Applications: as a Christian, I need to perceive these
spiritual truths

1. Angels are real spiritual beings, not figments of someone's
imagination;

they appear many times in the Scriptures . . . including in their most

important missions on earth: to announce Christ's birth, resurrection,

and return.

2. If Jesus, the Son of God Who was filled with the Spirit, needed the
help of

ministering angels following his great temptations and deep turmoil of

heart (Matthew 4:11; Luke 22:43) . . . surely I also need the assistance of

ministering angels in my life today.

3. Angels are examples to me on how to serve God . . . going where He
sends,

doing what He wills, immediately!

4. Angels usually appear as human beings (face of a man) to provide me
with

courage (lion), strength (ox), and spiritual vision (eagle).

"Arnold J. Benedict"

Dr. Curt Scarborough

Here's one for Ripley! "Believe It Or Not," one of my
"temporary" friends at

Logan Junior High School in 1948 was a boy named Arnold J. Benedict. I
always

suspected that the J stood for Judas, but I didn't mention it to him! Poor
Arnie took

enough grief just being identified by the other LJHS students as a probable

descendant of that infamous traitor in the Revolutionary War. What were his
parents

thinking of when they filled out his birth certificate? I wondered.

As I said, my friendship with Arnold didn't last. I dropped him
like an atom

bomb over Japan when I learned that he was a treacherous turncoat. Here's
the story!

There was a logical reason for the region of the state where I
was born and

raised to be called "Southern Illinois." It had very little to do with
geography.

Although we were widely known as the Land of Lincoln, sympathy for the
Confederacy

ran very strong in my neck of the woods. The War for State Sovereignty
(incorrectly

named the Civil War by some blue-belly historians) may have ended officially
in 1865,

but pot-shots were still being fired 80 years later . . . by the Baptists!

In Benton, Illinois, there were two kinds of Baptists in those
days . . . Southern

and Northern. These Christian brethren split up about the time John Brown
hitched a

ride on Harper's Ferry, launching the War Between the States. The Yankees
at First

Baptist Church sang, "John Brown's body lies a-mouldering in the grave, His
soul goes

marching on." Meanwhile, the Rebels at East Benton Baptist Church, sang out
patriotic

anthem: "In Dixieland I'll take my stand, and live and die in Dixie."

So it was that in 1948, Arnold J. Benedict . . . a Southern
Baptist boy from East

Benton church . . . forsook his sacred heritage to start attending a
Northern church. He

had fallen for the preacher's daughter at First Baptist! What a tragedy!!
He was too

young to die! We had buried Arnold Judas Benedict in effigy, while singing
the

heart-rending funeral dirge I had composed for that solemn occasion: "In
spite of all

that we could do, He changed his gray suit into blue!"

Paul wrote: "Perilous times will come: for men will be . . .
traitors."

(II Timothy 3:1-4) A traitor is one who betrays another person, country or
cause. It

refers to a treacherous person who violates his allegiance or faith. Both
Jeremiah

and Zephaniah gave stern prophetic warnings about treacherous men, Jeremiah
9:2

and Zephaniah 3:4. The worst kind of treachery is spiritual treason . . .
abandoning

one's loyalty to Christ.

Pillsbury College & Seminary

Pillsbury College & Seminary is offering full tuition scholarships to the

first 100 Bi-Vocational pastors who register in 2006.

Don't miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! Simply fill out the

Registration Form that you can find at www.pillsburycs.org
<www.pillsburycs.org/> and mail it

along with a $50 registration fee and you will receive your first textbooks,

instructions, and an examination within approximately one week. You will

also be contacted by your personal mentor . . . an ordained minister who

has been assigned by Pillsbury College & Seminary to assist you in

earning your Bachelor of Biblical Studies Degree.

If your have questions, please contact drcurt@pillsburycs.org or telephone

us at (314) 739-1121.

"Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things

which escape those who dream only by night."

- Edgar Allan Poe

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